[name]Just[/name] wondering what your thoughts are on this name. [name]Do[/name] you like it? Is it to tragic? Would you ever use it?
I think [name]Ophelia[/name] is gorgeous, at least in the abstract. I guess I’m trying to work out the answer to the same question you asked, whether it would actually work for a real child.
My associations are compounded because I think of [name]Hamlet[/name] and I think of Reviving [name]Ophelia[/name], that book about societal pressure on teenage girls. So it has a lot of really dramatic, tragic baggage to me. I don’t know if I’ll ever look at a child and decide “Yes! This newborn baby is clearly an [name]Ophelia[/name]!”
Plus I always say it “oh-feel-ya,” and after thinking about it and admiring its gorgeousness for a minute or two I always remember that it has “feel ya” in the middle of the name. I know name teasing is supposedly dying down, but I think that would bug me.
So, I’d be more likely to use [name]Portia[/name] or [name]Cordelia[/name] if I used a Shakespearian name.
I like [name]Ophelia[/name], it’s a beautiful name and I find the character in [name]Hamlet[/name] interesting. Being a tragic character hasn’t stopped [name]Juliet[/name] or [name]Cordelia[/name] from being used, and [name]Ophelia[/name] had some spirit at least. If you want a [name]Shakespeare[/name] name, I’d go for someone from his comedies, like [name]Rosalind[/name], [name]Beatrice[/name] or [name]Viola[/name]. And other O-names like [name]Octavia[/name] and [name]Oriana[/name] are very beautiful too.
[name]Love[/name] it! I know a girl with this name, aged twenty-plus. Her name seems to fit her well, [name]IMO[/name]!
It’s dramatic, to say the least.
I, personally, would not use it because I find her to be one the weakest of [name]Shakespeare[/name]'s female characters. If you’re looking for a Shakespearean name with drama and strength I would use either [name]Rosalind[/name], [name]Beatrice[/name], [name]Viola[/name], or [name]Katherine[/name].
Also, I like claredelune’s comment about teasing. I’d never given it much thought before, but “feel ya” could definitely cause an issue.
I think it’s a wonderful name. I love Shakespearean names. [name]Rosalind[/name], [name]Cordelia[/name] and [name]Helena[/name] are some of my favorites. [name]Ophelia[/name] doesn’t work well with our last name but if it did, I would definitely think about it.
If you like it, go for it. I don’t think it means your DD will automatically be super-dramatic or tragic or anything. It’s a beautiful name!
I love it. [name]Violet[/name] [name]Ophelia[/name] [name]Claire[/name] is a combo on my short list–I like the general reference to [name]Shakespeare[/name] (although not specifically to that character!). I like that while it’s hidden away in the MN spot, it doesn’t seem as tragic or teaseworthy (do to oh-feel-ya or whatever). Besides, I just find [name]Violet[/name] [name]Ophelia[/name] to be so stunning. 
I think there just was a thread a few days ago where I suggested [name]Ophelia[/name] as a name. I [name]LOVE[/name] [name]Ophelia[/name]. I mean [name]LOVE[/name], [name]LOVE[/name], [name]LOVE[/name]. (This isn’t one of those names I’d recommend you use, but I wouldn’t. I absolutely plan to suggest it to my SO when we start thinking about having children.)
I understand @okbrielle thought on [name]Ophelia[/name] being one of [name]Shakespeare[/name]'s “weakest” female characters but I consider her to be one of his most empathetic and deeply feeling characters. What makes her “weak” is that she behaves as she ought to (considering the time and customs) and thus cannot follow her own heart but must obey her father who uses her as a pawn against the man she loves. Who then kills her father. That’s a lot for a teenage girl to take in - her subsequent “madness” really shows how tortured she was by having to take the emotional abuse from her father and lover. What makes her one of my favorites is the grace she shows towards others despite all they put her through.
My name is mildly tragic and it’s never had an effect on me. ([name]Cassandra[/name]).
I think [name]Ophelia[/name] could work - every time it’s brought up, I see people loving on it, even trendies, I think it has wide appeal.
Like pp, I [name]LOVE[/name] [name]Ophelia[/name]. It’s so elegant and smart-sounding to me, but also playful.
The only thing I don’t like is the “oaf” sound at the beginning that would come across if someone inadvertently used the nn Ophie…BUT I love the name as a whole, and the nickname Fi is so cute!
[name]Ophelia[/name] (spelled [name]Ofelia[/name]) is the strong female protagonist of the Spanish movie [name]Pan[/name]'s Labyrinth! So although I originally had too strong an association with [name]Hamlet[/name] and the “[name]Ophelia[/name] Speaks” series, that doesn’t bother me anymore in the slightest.
nn Ophie would not be my favorite either.
my suggestions would be: Phi, [name]Fee[/name] and [name]Lia[/name].